Shipping and storage carrier for sheet material



June 17, 1958 F. J. LEFEVRE 2,339,198

SHIPPING AND STORAGE CARRIER FOR SHEET MATERIAL Filed June 7, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 I I W 7 I NVENTOR filerraancl J Le fevre ATTORNEY June 17,1958 F. J. LEFEVRE 2,839,193

SHIPPING AND STORAGE CARRIER FOR SHEET MATERIAL Filed June 7. 1954 v 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR IfmaIz/d J: LeFevre BY M ATTORNEY June 17, 1958 F. J. LEFEVRE 2,339,198

SHIPPING AND STORAGE CARRIER FOR SHEET MATERIAL Filed June 7, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 ,ea M

3/ 5/ 22 eg 2 W ,7 J

/9 I i5 Ma /6 J IN VENTOR lrnwnd J LeFevre BY M ATTORNEY United States Patent SHIPPING AND STORAGE CARRIER FOR SHEET MATERIAL Fernand J. Lefevre, Brackenridge, Pa, assignor to Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company, Allegheny County, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application June 7, 1954, Serial No. 434,961 Claims. (Cl. 211-41) similar binding means which is tied with a knot. If the rope is not properly tied it may become loosened or disengaged with the result that the sheets of glass may shift with respect to one another on the rack or may even fall from the rack. Furthermore, when a rope binder is employed, the rope tends to give when the weight of a stackof glass sheets is applied thereto; as, for example,

when the rack is moved, and this permits relative movement between the sheets of glass in the stack. It has been ,found that any movement between adjacent sheets of glass in a stack produces imperfections on the surface thereof; such as, for example, digs, scratches and the like which make the glass of inferior quality and often, un-

saleable.

The foregoing disadvantages are overcome by this invention, which, briefly, comprises a supporting rack or other container for stacks of glass sheets provided with a clamping means adapted to engage the side edges of the stack and the face of the front sheet of the stack,

thereby preventing movement of the stack with respect to the rack or container; and, as well, relative movement between the sheets in the stack. The rack or container of this invention is provided with a novel clamping means each of which comprises a pair of bracket members which are secured to a wall or side of the rack or container upon which the stacked sheets are supported. The bracket members extend outwardly from the wall and are positioned on opposite sides of the stacked sheets of glass, in contact with the side edges of the sheets. The bracket members have their terminal ends arranged to project beyond the front sheet of the stack and a clamping member extending between adjacent spaced brackets is secured thereto adjacent their terminal ends for clamping the brackets against the sides of the stack. The clamping member is spaced from the front sheet of the stack and is provided with a resilient sheath. A wedge member is inserted between the sheathed portion of the clamping member and the front sheet of the stack of glass sheets to clamp the stack against the stack-supporting wall or side of the rack or container to which the brackets are secured. A shipping or storage container for stacks of glass sheets embodying the described features of this invention permits the stacks to be moved either during storage or shipment without loss or breakage due to shifting of the stack or relative movement between the sheets forming the stack. In addition, the provision of a resiliently sheathed tension member for supporting the stack "ice wedging member affords a cushioning effect which absorbs the bulk of any shock received by the rack or container, thus preventing the glass from being broken by such shocks.

It is, therefore, the principal object of this invention to provide a container for a plurality of sheets of fragile material having means for engaging the sides and opposite faces of the stack thereby to prevent both movement of the stack in the container and relative movement between the sheets forming the stack.

Another object of this invention is to provide a container or rack for a plurality of sheets of fragile material having pairs of spaced bracket members adapted to engage the side edges of the sheets forming the stack and having means for clamping the spaced brackets against the sides of the stack to prevent sidewise movement of both the stack and the individual sheets of the stack.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a rack for supporting a plurality of sheets of glass or other fragile material having pairs of spaced brackets for clamping the sides of the stack and a clamping member secured to each pair of brackets at a point thereon spaced from the front sheet of the stock retained therein which is adapted to retain a wedge member in clamping engagement with the stack of sheets.

A further object of this invention is to provide a carrier for stacks of glass sheets having pairs of spaced brackets with a clamping member extending between the ends thereof projecting beyond a stack of sheets positioned between the brackets wherein the clamping member is provided with a resilient sheath for retaining a wedge member in clamping engagement with the stack while preventing the transmission of shock to the stack of sheets.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a shipping or storage apparatus for a plurality of glass sheets which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and which will prevent movement of the stack and the sheets therein without failure during the use thereof.

The foregoing and other objects of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings, wherein,

Figure l is a perspective view showing the features of this invention in the preferred embodiment thereof which comprises a rack for supporting several stacks of glass sheets in an inclined position;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view showing one of the upper clamping members depicted in Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view in side elevation taken along line 33 of Figure 1.

This invention, in its preferred embodiment, is employed in an A-frame rack indicated generally by the numeral 10 which may be removably supported on an elevated base such as a palette 11 having U-shaped legs 12 which permit the palette and rack to be moved with a lift truck or similar warehouse and freight-handling equipment.

The palette 11 is of standard construction and is formed of angle iron members 13 arranged to provide a frame, the members 13 being welded at the corners of the frame. The sides 13:: of each angle are vertically positioned and the sides 13b are horizontally positioned, the latter sides thus providing a bed. The leg members 12 are welded or otherwise secured to the lowermost face of the horizontally disposed side portions 13b of the angle irons 13. The A-frame rack 10 which is supported by the palette 11 is composed of spaced pairs of A-frames each of which consists of a pair of angle irons 14 which extend upwardly from the palette and are inclined toward one another. The lower ends of the angle irons 14 in each A-frame A-frames are connected at the bottoms thereof by angle irons 13c upon which a wood stringer 16 is mounted. The A-frame is thus composed of a pair of opposed inclined frames. Each of the inclined frames is provided with a plurality of wood cross-members 17 which are flat and are secured'at the opposite ends thereof to the correspondingly inclined angle irons 14 with screws or other suitable fastening means. One or more of the crossmembers 17 may be covered with a textile, a flock material or other substance to prevent the cross-member from scratching the surface 'of the glass sheets placed thereupon. At the base of each of the inclined frames thereare provided a plurality of horizontally positioned fiat board members 18 which are secured at one end. to the wood stringer 16; and, at the other end thereof, to a wood stringer 19 which is supported by a side 13b of an angle iron 13 forming palette 11. The board members 18 which form a supporting bed may be covered with a protective material in the same manner as the cross-members 17 are covered.

The opposed inclined frames of the rack 16 are each provided with an upper and lower pair of spaced brackets 20. Each of the brackets 20 is detachably secured to one of the cross-members 17 by an L-shaped strap 21,

the elongated portion of which is secured with screws or other suitable fastening means to the uppermost side of the bracket 20 and the depending portion of which extends over and engages the rear face of the crossmember 17. The brackets 20 are thus'movably supported on the cross-member 17 and the spacing between the brackets may be varied as desired. The brackets 20 extend horizontally outwardly from the cross-member 17 of the inclined frame to which they are secured. The spaced brackets 29 in the upper pair are horizontally aligned and each of the brackets 20 in the upper pair is vertically aligned with the corresponding bracket 20 in the lower pair thereof. Each of the brackets 20 in both the upper and lower pair thereof is provided with a slot 22 adjacent the outermost end thereof which extends from the top edge of the bracket downwardly and forwardly toward the terminal end of the bracket so that the opposed walls of the slots are inclined. The bottom wall of each slot is arcuate and a portion thereof is, by virtue of the inclination of the slot, positioned below the upper outermost edge of the slot. The outermost end of each bracket 20 is reinforced with an L-shaped metal strap 23 which is secured to the bottom face and the outer or terminal end ofrthe bracket. A tubular member 24 having threads 25 formed in the ends thereof is positioned in the slots 22 of the upper spaced pair of brackets 20. The length of the tubular member 24 is such that the threaded ends thereof project beyond the sides of the spaced brackets 20. An internally threaded pipe flange member 26 is placed upon each threaded portion 25 of the tubular member 24. At least one of the pipe flange members 26 is provided witha lever 27. The pipe flange members 26 may be rotated until they are in contact with the outer sides of the brackets 20. The tubular member 24 is provided with a sleeve 28 formed of a resilient material such as rubber or an equivalent material. The lower pair of spaced brackets have a wood dowel member 29 positioned in the slots 22 formed therein.

A plurality of sheets of glass may be shipped or stored in the hereinabove described rack by removing the tubular member 24 from the upper pair of spaced brackets 20-20 and .the dowel member 29 from the lower spaced .pair of brackets. A stack of glass sheets, shown in dotted lines, is then placed between the spaced brackets 4 -20 of the upper and lower pairs thereof with th lower ends of sheets supported by the bed members 18 and with the bottom sheet of the stack supported by' members 17 of the inclined frame of the rack 10. It is preferable to have a sheet of corrugated paper 30 disposed between the bottomsheet and the cross-members. 17. The brackets 20 are moved on the cross-members 17 until they are in contact with the sides-of the stack and the tubular member 24 and the dowel member 29 are then placed in the slots 22 of the upper and lower pairs of brackets respectively. The pipe flange members 26 are thereupon rotated until they are in contact with the outer sides of the brackets 2020 of the upper pair. One of the pipe flange members 26 may then be rotated by means of the lever 27'to force the brackets 2020 7 against and clamp theside edges of the sheets of. glass 1 over the exposed face of the front sheet of .glass and a wedge member 31 is then inserted between the cover 30 on the stack of glass sheets .and' the portion of the tubular member 24 provided with a resilient cover 28. The

wedge 31 is then forced downwardly to clamp the stack of glass sheets against the cross-members 17 of the rack 10. A wedge 31 is also inserted between the, cover 30 on the stack and the dowel member 29 and then forced downwardly to clamp the lower end of the stack against the cross-members 17. The wedges 31 may be secured to the rack 10 by chains 32 to prevent the loss thereof. It will. be apparent from the above description that a stack of glass sheets may be firmly secured to a rack having the features of this invention. The stack is supported in an inclined position resting against the crossmember' 17 with the lower end of each sheet in the stack supported by the bed members 18. The upper pair of brackets 2020 firmly clamp the sides of the sheets in the stack thus preventing sidewise movement of both the stack and relative movement between the sheets inthe stack in the same direction. The tubular member 24 and the dowel member 29 each cooperate with the wedges 31 to clamp the stack of sheets against the cross-menr' 'bers 1 7- of the rack 20. The' wedges 31 tend to force the respective members 24 and 29 forwardly and downward-.

. ber 24 serves as a cushion which absorbs any shock that the rack 10 receives thus reducing the breakage of the sheets in the stack. The cover 28 also tends to engage the wedge 31 very firmly and prevents the wedge from being displaced. A rack 10 may be provided with several sets of upper and lower brackets 2020 and thereby be adapted to receive and support a plurality of stacks of glass sheets. Four such sets of upper and lower brackets are shown in the rack appearing in Figure 1. When his desired to remove the sheets of .glass from the carrier the wedges 31, the tubular member 24 and the dowel member 29 are removed. The brackets 20 may be moved onthe cross-members 17 away from the sides of the stacked sheets or removed from the crossmembers. The sheets may thereupon be removed from the rack.

The essential features of this inventionhave been described as being associated with an A-frame'type of rack. It will be obvious to those skilled in this art that these features may be employed with other types of supports for stacks of fragile sheets; such as for example, a crate or similar container. While the invention herein has also been described and shown for use in shipping and storing stacks of glass sheets, it is obvious that it may be used for the same purpose with stacks of sheets of other fragile and brittle materials; such as, for example, slate, stone, cement-asbestos sheets and the like. These and other modifications within the scope of the claims herein will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A carrier for stacked sheets of fragile material comprising a support for said stacked sheets, a pair of spaced brackets engaging said support and extending outwardly therefrom, said brackets being positioned to engage opposite sides of said stack and having the terminal ends thereof disposed beyond the front of said stack, a clamping member extending between said spaced brackets and detachably secured thereto adjacent the terminal ends thereof, said clamping member being spaced from the front of the stacked sheets positioned between said brackets and adapted to clamp said brackets against the sides of said stack, and a wedge spaced from said brackets and engaging said clamping member and the front of said stack for clamping said stack against said support.

2. A carrier for stacked sheets of fragile material cornprising a support for said stacked sheets, a pair of spaced brackets engaging said support and extending outwardly therefrom, said brackets being positioned to engage the sides of said stack and having the terminal ends thereof disposed beyond the front of said stack, the terminal ends of each of said brackets being provided with an inclined slot extending downwardly from the top of said bracket and forwardly toward the end thereof, a cross-member extending between said brackets and positioned in said slots, said cross-member being spaced from the front of the stacked sheets positioned between said brackets,

clamping means movably mounted on said cross-member for clamping said brackets against the sides of said stack and a wedge spaced from said brackets and engaging said cross-member and the front of said stack for clamping said stack against said support.

3. A carrier as set forth in claim 2 wherein said spaced brackets are movably secured to said support whereby the position of said brackets with respect to each other may be varied.

4. A carrier as set forth in claim 2 wherein said crossmember comprises a tube having threaded portions at the ends thereof adapted to extend outwardly beyond the sides of said brackets and said clamping means comprises an internally threaded plate engaging the threaded ends of said tube and the outer sides of said brackets.

5. A carrier as set forth in claim 4 wherein said tube cross-member is provided with a resilient cover between the threaded ends thereof.

6. A carrier for stacked sheets of glass comprising a rack including oppositely inclined frames, a plurality of spaced horizontal cross-members secured to said frames for supporting stacks of glass sheets, a plurality of pairs of spaced brackets movably supported on said cross-members, each pair of said brackets engaging the same crossmembers and adapted to engage the opposite sides of said stack, said brackets being positioned to extend outwardly from said inclined frames and each bracket being provided with an inclined slot adjacent the outer end thereof, said slot extending downwardly from the top in each bracket and outwardly toward the end thereof, a crossmember extending between the brackets of each pair thereof and projecting beyond the sides thereof, said bracket cross-members being positioned in said slots and spaced from the horn of the stack positioned between said pairs of brackets, clamping members mounted adjacent the ends of said bracket cross-members, means for retaining said clamping members in clamping engagement with said brackets for clamping said brackets against said stack, and a wedge member spaced from said brackets and engaging said bracket cross-member for clamping said stack of glass sheets against said inclined frame.

7. A carrier as set forth in claim 6 wherein said bracket cross-member comprises a tube member having threaded ends and a resilient cover therebetween and said clamping members consist of internally threaded plates engaging the threaded ends of said tube.

8. A carrier for stacked sheets of fragile material comprising a support for said stacked sheets, a pair of spaced brackets engaging said support and extending outwardly therefrom, said brackets being positioned to engage the sides of said stack and having the terminal ends thereof disposed beyond the front of said stack, the terminal ends of each of said brackets being provided with an inclined slot extending downwardly from the top of said bracket and forwardly toward the end thereof, a cross-member extending between said brackets and positioned in said slots, said cross-member being spaced from the front of the stacked sheets positioned between said brackets and comprising a tube having threaded portions at the ends thereof adapted to extend outwardly beyond the sides of said brackets, clamping means movably mounted on said cross-member for clamping said brackets against the sides of said stack, said clamping means comprising an internally threaded plate engaging the threaded ends of said tube and the outer sides of said brackets, and a wedge engaging said cross-member and the front of said stack for clamping said stack against said support.

9. A carrier as set forth in claim 8 wherein said tube cross-member is provided with a resiilent cover between the threaded ends thereof.

10. A carrier for stacked sheets of glass comprising a rack including oppositely inclined frames, a plurality of spaced horizontal cross-members secured to said frames for supporting stacks of glass sheets, a plurality of pairs of spaced brackets movably supported on said cross-members, each pair of said brackets engaging the same crossmembers and adapted to engage the opposite sides of said stack, said brackets being positioned to extend outwardly from said inclined frames and each bracket being provided with an inclined slot adjacent the outer end thereof, said slot extending downwardly from the top in each bracket and outwardly toward the end thereof, a crossmember extending between the brackets of each pair thereof and projecting beyond the sides thereof, said bracket cross-members being positioned in said slots and spaced from the top of the stack positioned between said pairs of brackets and comprising a tube member having threaded ends and a resilient cover therebetween, clamping members mounted adjacent the ends of said bracket cross-members, said clamping members consisting of internally threaded plates engaging the threaded ends of said tube, means for retaining said clamping members in clamping engagement with said brackets for clamping said brackets against said stack, and a wedge member engaging said bracket cross-member for clamping said stack of glass sheets against said inclined frame.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,772,734 Romine Aug. 12, 1930 1,836,362 Crowley Dec. 15, 1931 1,905,905 Johnson Apr. 25, 1933 2,156,876 Scull May 2, 1939 2,305,405 Burrell Dec. 15, 1952 

